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Champions of Change: Empowering Bamboo for a better Future
Dedicated volunteers steer the World Bamboo Organization. The Ambassadors work independently but are connected as a team, and we collaborate to expand the potential of our actions and our mission.
Amy Villanueva
USA | Philippines
Social Enterprise, Sustainable Business and Cooperatives
Amy Villanueva is a social entrepreneur and sustainable business leader working at the intersection of bamboo, community development, and inclusive economic growth. She is Co-Founder and Growth Manager of Kawayan Collective Agriculture Cooperative in the Philippines, a social enterprise dedicated to advancing bamboo as a durable, beautiful, and sustainable construction material while creating stronger local livelihoods and more resilient housing solutions.
Since helping launch Kawayan Collective in 2019 in partnership with Base Bahay, a program of the Hilti Foundation, Amy has played a key role in developing the organization’s business model, market growth, and cooperative structure. Today, Kawayan Collective processes more than 20,000 bamboo culms annually into construction-grade poles, panels, and other value-added products. Under her leadership, the enterprise has achieved sustained revenue growth while transitioning toward a worker-owned cooperative model.
Amy brings extensive experience in social enterprise, international development, fundraising, program management, and business development. Earlier in her career, she worked with organizations including the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Mercy Corps, Foundation University, and FareStart, contributing to initiatives in global development, disaster recovery, education, and social entrepreneurship.
She holds a Sustainable MBA from Presidio Graduate School and has long been committed to using business as a tool for positive social and environmental change. Through Kawayan Collective, Amy continues to champion bamboo-based value chains that support local communities, sustainable construction, and a more inclusive circular economy in the Philippines.
